I wanted to explain to my lover what it felt like living brown in a predominantly white gay ghetto. We chose to retire with our own people so we could finally settle into safety and harmony. I never met a more hostile and prejudice group of men and women. I'm only whole again when my lover pulls me back and reminds me what home is...us. 20-May-2018

Despite all the beef and the sometimes problematic lyrics, the rap game is a whole lot more inclusive than you thought. There are several out and proud gay rappers who are absolutely killing it with diverse, sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant lyrics that you should definitely be vibing along to. From Mykki Blanco to Young M.A, these are artists who deserve your attention and support as they rally for visibility as queer artists and absolutely bangin’ MCs.

London artist Sakima was first attracted to a boy when he was 6: “I remember very distinctly a group of girls laughing at me and weirded out that I fancied a guy,” says the electro-R&B musician born Isaac Sakima. Though the feelings weren't reciprocated (“He was straight, as far as I know”), his childhood crush serves as the namesake for the 26-year-old’s Ricky EP (out Oct. 13). Through the seven songs, the singer-producer fetishizes daddies, rejects heteronormative traditions and explores the lexicon of Polari, a coded language used by gay men in Britain in the 1950s and ’60s, when homosexuality was illegal.